(Spencer)– Area residents and veterans are invited to attend a free 8-hour mental health first aid training session Wednesday, November 6th at the Spencer American Legion Post. The session will be held from 8:00 am until 5:30 pm and a lunch will be provided.
Taylor Prather is with Seasons Center for Behavioral Health, which is putting on the event. She tells KUOO news the information will be presented by Joseph Coffey of Blue Aid Consulting, Inc. who served a combined 13 years in the Army and Reserve…
“Within the course people will learn, you know, how to recognize the common mental health disorders and the signs and symptoms of those and then how to intervene in a crisis. So they learn to, first aid or CPR courses that you would take for physical health, this one is just, it’s to teach you how to get somebody professional help, you know, so if somebody were to have a heart attack you would be performing, you know, chest compressions or calling 911 and, you know, talking to them, you know, that kind of stuff. It’s kind of a in between of how to get someone where they need to go, or for the lay person to come and be able to learn about crisis intervention in the short term.”
Prather says it’s critical as many people as possible know how to respons and what to look for when it comes to mental health issues…
“We’re just looking to spread awareness and, you know, to provide our community with tools and so that individuals who are experiencing mental health challenges can be supported by not only the professionals, the small amount of professionals that we have in the community, but also our general community members.”
Prather says there will be limited seating for the session and that pre-registration is requested. You can find how to do that by clicking on this story under the news tab at Explore Okoboji-dot-com.
